Tag Archive: chocolate destinations

Hot Chocolate

Traditional Hot Chocolate Recipe Using Tablea

It may probably come as no surprise that I love chocolates… in every form. However, hot chocolate has always had a special spot in my chocolate lover heart. I especially fall for that extra thick and rich hot chocolate! And so I wondered, why not just make my own?

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Excellent Chocolate Destinations

Are you a true-blue chocoholic on the hunt for an adventure in new territories? These sugar-laced places will certainly satisfy the wanderlust in you as well as your sweet-tooth cravings all at the same time!

Montreux-Gruyères-Broc, Switzerland

Boring commutes are old news in Switzerland. You can ride the 19th-century belle époque Pullman car that runs from Montreux to Broc and swing by some infamous food destinations along the way.
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The Chocoholic’s Paradise: the Caribbean

The Caribbean islands are almost surreal when it comes to the ever-so-fantastic cacao bean. You’ll get to stumble upon a history with astounding backstories, chocolate factories, and enthusiastic chocolatiers.  Here's are a few places places to visit (as summarized from an article in USA Today, A chocoholic's guide to the Caribbean).

Hotel Chocolat, St. Lucia
As you enter the on-site restaurant, Boucan, it’s safe to say you will be awestruck. You can devour cacao-inspired cuisine such as cacao ravioli, along with chocolate soup topped with banana, caramel and toasted almond. Their mahogany floors scream chocolate, too. One of the must-try experience is the tree-to-bar in which you get to choose ripe cocoa pods from the trees and whip up your own chocolate bars. Read more

Chocolate Pavilion

A mouth-watering design, with the use of innovative materials in architecture, has produced what seems to be the wildest dream of a chocoholic. A pavilion purely composed of chocolate.

Engineers at Princeton University have collaborated with the Belgian chocolate company Barry Callebaut, the biggest chocolate manufacturer in the world, to create the first ever functional structure made entirely out of chocolate.

"I think most people just do what has been done before, and I think that is very restricting," said Sigrid Adriaenssens, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Princeton who participated in the said project. "I think especially in structural engineering, a lot of the systems that we use have specific names and people think that they can only use the systems that already exist."

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Bring Home the Chocolate-Covered Bacon!

Ed Gotwalt, the owner of Mister Ed's Elephant Museum and Candy Emporium based in Orrtanna, Pennsylvania, recently introduced the phenomenon of meat and chocolate in his store. He started serving chocolate covered bacon about a month ago.  Since then he's been keeping his supply up, ordering 25 to 50 pounds nearly every week.

According to Gotwalt, it has been so much of a rage that their supply is having a hard time keeping up with the demand. Their store’s sign says "Bring home the bacon to Dad. It's covered in chocolate." That seems to be pulling people into the store. "Dad always bring home the bacon. Now you can bring home the bacon for Dad, and it's chocolate covered," he said.
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Fano Carnival – Wild Chocolate Dreams

As a famous ancient Roman saying goes, 'Semel in anno licet insanire', which means 'madness is permissible once a year', has been really applicable for the Fano Carnival. This is arguably considered the most famous of all carnivals in Italy.

This is the time of the year when people go berserk and are taken by the frenzy of festival, which makes them abandon their daily routine and join the festivities. The Fano Carnival seems to rob people of their inhibitions, and people indulge in it with reckless abandon.
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Chocolate for Foodie and Fashionista

Chefs of award-winning stature have recently unleashed and released their latest cocoa and couture at the recently concluded Charity in Chocolate benefit event featuring District of Columbia’s only Chocolate Fashion Show.

It was hosted by the Heart of America Foundation (HOA), a DC based nonprofit organization that boasts volunteer services as well as literacy.  They advocate for the needs of marginalized children in the DC area as well as nationwide. Income and proceeds from this event provide funds to children living in poverty who are not able to buy their own books and school supplies.

This event was held at the magnificent National Building Museum, and featured more than 60 local world class chefs who offered not only sweet and savory tastings but very well conceived gravity-defying chocolate sculptures.
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Chocolate And Wine Events

In celebration of excellent pairings, the Hotel Los Gatos now gives you Fireside Fridays as the perfect getaway from a seemingly busy week in Silicon Valley. This event features a wine and chocolate ensemble from 5pm to 7pm every Friday for the whole month of April and May.

Every week, they will also showcase a local variety of cheeses and an array of delectable taste tests. If this sounds good to you, you'll find the hotel located in the friendly neighborhood of Los Gatos, just a few minutes away from the airport of San Jose.

Local wines from the Santa Cruz  Mountain area are served.  So enthusiasts can enjoy Testarossa, Thomas Fogarty, the Mountain Winery to name a few. The tangent Dio Deka restaurant and a Michelin-star treasure is a sight for anyone who wants to enjoy a very relaxing couple's weekend. Reservations of the surrounding hotels and any conference facilities can be reserved and booked through their website of www.hotellosgatos.com.
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Salty Chocolate

Salon du Chocolat, the largest trade fair devoted to chocolate, takes place every November. A unique fashion show is part of the event in which models walk down the runway wearing little but chocolate. Last year, there were chocolate basques and skirts, gowns imbedded with truffles, and even handbags made out of 70% cocoa solids.

The rest of us eat chocolate instead of wearing it, but there will always be a strong connection between chocolate and fashion. Chocolate never goes out of style. However, the forms in which we want to consume it incessantly change.

The latest trend for chocolate is to taste salty. Odd, eh? During the late 90's, chocolate combined with chilli was all the rage. Today, the combination of chocolate and salt seems to be in. It is said to have started around 2003, the time Gerard Coleman of Artisan du Chocolat devised sea-salt caramels which are tiny orbs of salty toffee covered in dark chocolate and dusted in cocoa.
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Chocolate Dinner Supports Audubon Center

The yearly Chocolate Dinner happening on Saturday, March 3, at the Heritage Hotel in Southbury will take you to chocolate heaven. It aims to support the Audubon Center at Bent of the River which is a nature sanctuary in Southbury.

New Morning Market is known for their natural, organic, and environment-friendly food items and wellness products. They will be sending the dinner guests to Mexico, figuratively speaking, with the help of a Mexican Antojito-inspired menu by culinary chef Carol Byer-Alcorace.

The night will be kicked off by a "Cocktail Hour and a Half" in which visitors will be able to socialize, get to see live birds of prey, and savor appetizers--namely chocolate, spinach, and cheese quesadillas. If you happen to be a fan of wines, enjoy the wine tasting which is courtesy of some local vineyards like Hopkins, Walker Road, and White Silo.
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